Pregnancy Depression
Pregnancy is considered as the happiest moment in every woman's life, but for some women pregnancy is often treated as a time of confusion, fear, sadness, stress and even depression. However, up to 20% of women feel bad with some symptoms of depression during pregnancy, and a quarter to half of these will be struggling with major depression. Depression is a mood disorder, which influence one in four women at some point during their lifetime, so it should be common that this illness would also touch women who are pregnant. But all women often couldn’t diagnose the depression during pregnancy because people think it is just another type of hormonal imbalance; this assumption can be very dangerous for the mother as well as unborn baby. Depression should be no surprise, it is an illness that can be treated and managed during pregnancy, but the first step of seeking out help and support is the most important.
The symptoms of depression during pregnancy are: two or more weeks of depressed mood, decreased interest or no satisfaction in activities, change in appetite, change in sleep patterns, fatigue or loss of energy, difficulty concentrating, excessive feeling of guilt or worthlessness, thoughts of suicide, extreme restlessness and irritability. Some times women may ignore or misdiagnose the symptoms because they are confused with symptoms of pregnancy. The most common ones include changes in appetite, sleep or energy. Many women suffer without reason because they do not ask for help. When depression turns to severe, women may not eat properly, get adequate rest, or receive prenatal care. Some People may get scary thoughts about wanting to die, or bizarre beliefs or behaviors, which can be indications of very serious problems and should be treated as a medical emergency. These factors may effect on the unborn baby and results to premature and low birth-weight infants.
Symptoms of depression are particularly true during pregnancy and the postpartum period, but these can be difficult to recognize. Changes in physical body that can be associated with depression, such as changes in weight and difficulty sleeping, are often difficult to tease out from normal changes associated with pregnancy and postpartum. Also, because women often feel more nervous and extreme fatigue that come with having a new baby; the first weeks postpartum are a difficult time for many new moms without postpartum depression. It is very difficult for women to identify that they might have depression, rather than simply believing themselves to be bad mothers or unable to handle the stresses. Pregnancy depression is a treatable illness. There are a number of effective treatment and medications available for it such as psychotherapy and antidepressant medication. Women’s who are depressed are not at their fault, but they should seek help to overcome it. Medicine of this treatment is unknown so you should avoid remedies for this treatment. The best way is to consult your midwife or medical professional for a referral to a psychologist or psychiatrist. There is no need to feel shame in seeing a child psychiatrist; in fact it shows your concern towards the safety and health of your baby and yourself.